Kesgrave Town Council

Attendance

Present: Councillor Neal Beecroft-Smith (Chair), Councillor Jonathan Ogden, Councillor Geoff Lynch, Councillor Rod Gibson, Councillor Avtar Athwall.

In attendance: Angela Dougall (Responsible Financial Officer), County Councillor Alistair Jeffreys.

Apologies: Councillor Alan Comber, Councillor Alastair Cook, Joanna Abbott (Town Clerk).

The meeting commenced at 7.15pm.

The Chair read the emergency evacuation procedure.

Numbered Agenda Items

1. Welcome and Apologies for Absence

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting. Apologies were received and accepted from Councillors Comber and Cook, and the Town Clerk.

Resolved: To accept the apologies for absence as presented.

2. Declarations of Interest

Councillors Ogden, Lynch, Gibson, Athwall, and Beecroft-Smith all declared no interests. The Chair noted that declarations could be made at any point during the meeting.

3. Minutes of the Town Council meeting held on the 29 June 2026

The minutes of the Town Council meeting held on 29 June 2026 were presented.

Resolved: The minutes were unanimously approved as a true and accurate record of the meeting and were duly signed by the Chair.

4. Chairman's Communication

The Chair provided the following updates:

• Thanked Councillor Gibson for chairing the previous meeting.
• Reported on the success of the Kesgrave Funday, noting it was extremely well attended and a popular community event. Thanks were extended to the office staff and councillors who helped on the day.
• Reported on his attendance at the Chinwags 5th anniversary event, highlighting its importance to the community and thanking the organisers and volunteers at KWMCC.
• Noted the Kesgrave Library’s 20th anniversary. The Chair was unable to attend due to a last-minute work commitment.
• Reported on his attendance at the Ipswich Mayor's reception, which provided a valuable opportunity to build relationships with chairs and mayors from neighbouring councils in light of potential future local government restructuring.

The report was noted.

5. Clerks/Officer Report/Update

The Chair confirmed there was nothing to report from the Town Clerk. The Responsible Financial Officer also confirmed she had nothing to report.

6. Members of the Public

One member of the public was present, County Councillor Jeffreys, who indicated he would speak under agenda item 7.

7. County and District Councillor Reports

County Councillor Alistair Jeffreys

County Councillor Jeffreys reported on several highways matters, including a survey conducted by Martlesham Heath Parish Council for the Foxhall Road crossing and concerns regarding the proposed Woodbridge Road cycling improvements. He noted that while many potholes in old Kesgrave had been fixed, some on Penzance Road required reassessment. He also provided an update on his locality budget, including funding for play equipment repairs and a request from Kesgrave Library, which he praised for its extensive community services. A full written report would be circulated to the Council.

District and County Councillor Debbie McCallum

It was noted that Councillor McCallum had been in contact with the office and was available if needed, but had not provided a report for the meeting.

District Councillor Stuart Lawson

No update was provided.

District Councillor Geoff Lynch

District Councillor Lynch reported on his attendance at three East Suffolk Council meetings. At Audit and Governance, significant errors were identified in the draft accounts. At the Scrutiny Committee, concerns were raised about the lack of temporary accommodation in the southern part of the district, with homeless residents being housed in Lowestoft. At Full Council, he reported on issues with the new waste collection service and questioned the council’s policy of collecting Tetra Pak cartons when no recycling facilities exist in the UK. A further major issue discussed was the removal of the requirement for developers of nationally significant infrastructure projects to provide community funding, which could negatively impact East Suffolk with projects like Sizewell C. Finally, he relayed a resident request for the Council’s speed indicator device (SID) data. Councillor Gibson confirmed he was reviewing the data to produce a more informative report, which would be made available in due course.

The reports were noted.

8. Finance & Governance

9. Planning & Development

10. Community & Recreation

11. Local Council Award Scheme; submit application confirming KTC meets all the Criteria for the Bronze Award

Council confirms that all the required documents, information and conditions are in place for the Bronze level of the Local Council Award Scheme, and that these are published on the Council's website, where applicable: and it resolves to submit an application.

Unless it is a matter of law, the panel is not making a judgement on the quality of the evidence at Bronze level; it simply confirms that the documentation and information is in place, up-to-date and complies with the guidance. All policies should comply with current legislation and guidance and note the date of the next review.

Resolved: It was proposed by Councillor Gibson, seconded by Councillor Lynch, unanimously to progess with the application.

12. Community Engagement; Kesgrave Magazine

The Council considered a proposal to produce a biannual Kesgrave Magazine to be distributed to all households. Discussion points included the need for clear metrics to measure success, the inclusion of a digital version, and ensuring appropriate Town Council branding and information, such as advertising councillor vacancies. It was agreed that a draft version would be circulated to councillors for review prior to printing, with a planned distribution in the second week of September. It was agreed to fund from the unspent Neighbourhood Plan budget (a budget virement to be actioned).

Resolved: It was proposed by Councillor Lynch, seconded by Councillor Gibson, and unanimously agreed to proceed with the production and distribution of one pilot edition of the magazine. The feedback and success of the initial edition will be reviewed by the Full Council before committing to further issues. 

13. Devolution/Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

An update was provided by Councillor Lynch, who reported that the working groups, comprising staff from the relevant councils, have now been formed to begin work on the reorganisation.

14. Other/Urgent Communications

The Chair confirmed that no other urgent communications had been received.

15. Date of Next Meeting

It was noted that the next meeting of the Town Council would be held on Monday 21 September 2026 at 7.15pm.

16. Agenda Items for Next Meeting

Members were reminded to submit any agenda items to the Town Clerk at least one week prior to the next meeting.

17. Resolution to exclude the Public under the Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960

Resolved: To exclude the press and public from the remainder of the meeting due to the confidential nature of the business to be transacted.

Please note that the Council uses AI to transcribe audio recordings of our meetings to assist in generating minutes. These drafts undergo a thorough human review and correction process by Council staff to ensure the accuracy of the final record.